UPDATED: DEC 10, 2023 355ml bottle, New York 2012. Cheeky late rate. Dark brown pour, strong raisin base, smooth amber malt.

UPDATED: SEP 14, 2020 12oz bottle - shared. Sample with a friend. Strong Belgian Ale - darker and malty. Solid

UPDATED: MAR 7, 2020 Another review of a beer that I've made in the past that RB has lost. I'm getting really tired of it. The value of this site is rapidly diminishing. New review: this is from a bottle that is some years old refrigerated for most of the time but I can't say that it was all the time. The inside of the bottle cap which I think had an oxygen absorption Blair had turned very dark brown. Poured with little to no head. The Aromas are raisins, molasses and Brandy. Flavors are similar to nose, sweet up front with just a little carbonation to balance, some chocolate and some off flavors. Body's not bad except for the end of the bottle of were some chunks that I almost choked on. Decent enough All Things Considered but not something I would want to do it again.

12oz bottle share in 2013. Deep brown with a tan head. Aroma of raisins, prunes, dates, dark malt and caramel. Fantastic mouthfeel in the beer. So much wonderful dried fruit and Christmas pudding flavour. Not too sweet, though. Such a shame you don’t see Dogfishhead in the UK anymore.

UPDATED: APR 6, 2019 2008 bottle reviewed on 4/5/19. Dark brown pour with a short-lived khaki head. German alt or maibock pruny esters on the nose. Prune and brown sugar flavors.

UPDATED: DEC 24, 2018 2009 bottle, at a tasting in 2018. Hazy reddish amber with very small frothy beige head, woodsy sweet rum aroma, low carbonation, very boozy sweet taste, thin body, long finish. This is like drinking pure spirits!

From May 2008 I got this bottle in a trade with Wasatch. Thanks John! The pour reveals a clear reddish amber liquid with a 2 finger head of foam and plenty of lacing. Very good head retention. The smell has notes of wood, bubblegum, candy sugar, and a fruitiness. The taste is....different. I get a musky flavour mixed with some caramel malt, along with bubblegum, some candy sugar, but, I can't get over the muskiness, if that is the proper way to describe it. Whole lot of alcohol going on in the taste as well, and too much warming for the abv, imho. I'm drinking this at near room temperature and maybe that isn't the way to go but under these conditions, it's not working for me at all. The body is definitely on the watery side for me.. I'm glad I got to try this brew but it just doesn't do it for me, unlike the majority of DFH's brews. 1 bottle is more than enough and I wouldn't seek this out again, for sure. To me, the flavours are a mess.

May 28, 2017. Flight selection at DFH brewpub in Rehoboth. Outstanding Belgian strong...smoky, oak flavor...long caramel, sugary finish. Will be looking for this in the future.

Originally rated on 1/2/2009.A nice deep brown with a slight reddish tint body, off white head that left plenty of lace. Flavor was a disappointment with mostly a metallic presence that dominated the other flavors. I guess this was a bad bottle, maybe i might try it again someday.

Dark clear, brown / reddish pour with thick beige foam. Full body with less fizz and a thick, sweet finish. Dried fruit in the nose and caramel, nutty malts, burnt sugar. Some light bitterness, but this is all about the malt mingling with the fruit. The finish has a little yeast and alcohol. A strong, complex approach to a Belgian that would compliment a range of flavorful foods.